D'Andre Swift rushes for 175 yards and a touchdown while DeVonta Smith makes four catches for 131 yards and a 63-yard touchdown as the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Minnesota Vikings 34-28; Justin Jefferson ties the NFL record for fastest player to surpass 5,000 receiving yards.
Friday 15 September 2023 07:41, UK
Jalen Hurts ran for a pair of one-yard touchdowns and threw a 63-yard strike to DeVonta Smith, while D'Andre Swift ran for 175 yards and a score as the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles beat the Minnesota Vikings 34-28 on Thursday night.
Hurts, the MVP runner-up, shook off a sluggish passing performance in the first half when he connected with Smith for the score in the third quarter that made it 27-7.
Kirk Cousins hit Jordan Addison for a 62-yard touchdown that made it 27-14 in the fourth and found K.J. Osborn for a 10-yard pass that cut it to 27-21 and put the Eagles (2-0) on edge.
But Swift reached the end zone on a two-yard run for a 34-21 lead with 4:13 left, leaving the Vikings without enough time to score twice.
Minnesota (0-2), who had three first-half turnovers in a season-opening loss to Tampa Bay, lost three fumbles in the first half in Philly and four overall.
Minnesota Vikings
Philadelphia Eagles
In perhaps the most deflating moment for the Vikings, Justin Jefferson fumbled a 30-yard catch into the end zone and out of bounds for a touchback with Minnesota trailing 10-7 in the second quarter.
Even with the fumble, Jefferson topped 5,000 receiving yards in 52 career games, tying Hall of Famer Lance Alworth for the fewest games needed to hit that mark in NFL history. He recorded his fifth game with at least 10 catches and 150 yards, the most by an NFL player before turning 25, having only turned 24 in June.
Cousins threw for 364 yards and four touchdowns, two to T.J. Hockenson, while Jefferson had 11 catches for 159 yards.
Hurts finished 18 of 23 for 193 yards - mostly to Smith, who also hauled in a 54-yard catch as he posted 131 yards from four receptions.
A.J. Brown, the Eagles' other star receiver, seemed unhappy with Hurts on the sidelines and coach Nick Sirianni had to step in and calm the situation. At that point, Brown had only four targets before eventually finishing with four catches for 29 yards.
Jake Elliott kicked a pair of field goals for the Eagles, including a 61-yarder to conclude the first half after Jefferson's fumble.
Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson on his fumble: "I'm putting a lot on myself, fumbling in the end zone like that when we need points," Jefferson said. "Being the captain of the team, I have to know the situation, take care of the ball. I told my teammates, that's on me and it won't happen again."
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni on D'Andre Swift: "He just showed vision, explosiveness. I thought the offensive line did a phenomenal job of pushing them off the ball. So, I was really pleased he protected the ball. That was a lot of touches, too. Not only pleased with how he saw it and how he hit it, but also thought he protected the ball."
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts: "We're a work in progress. We strive for progress, not perfection. We want to grow and find our identity."
The Vikings, who have started the season 0-2, seek their first win at home to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, while the Eagles continue their pursuit of a return to the Super Bowl on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night in the second of their five scheduled prime time games.
Week Two continues on Sunday when the Kansas City Chiefs visit the Jacksonville Jaguars from 6pm followed by the New York Jets at the Dallas Cowboys.
